urban bee keeping in south wales

[beepollen]

i need to eat more bee pollen but at twenty five pounds a kilo,its only fair on my bank manager i become a beekeeper to supplement this need,how much do i need to start up ?

 

[Repwoc]

How much do you need to eat?

 

[thurrock bees]

how much do i need to start up ?

the sky is the limit, if you buy cheap, but from a good source £2-300

 

[gavin]

Beekeeping is a time-consuming craft and there is lots to learn, so only do it if you really want to!

Basic beekeeping kit from Thornes with no bees: £150 plus VAT, but I don't know if the pollen harvest from one hive will be sufficient for you.

Floor pollen trap: £27 plus VAT, the one I preferred was a Sundance Pollen trap and it was a lot more expensive than that.

Bees: prices range from £50 to £250 for a small 5-frame colony in spring. Hard to find at the lower price.

More for equipment to extract honey, more for various bits, generally people quickly go to 2-3 colonies.

You may only get a few pounds of dried pollen from one full hive (I think I had about a pound in a week or a fortnight from the better of the three hives I tried, but that was at the peak of the season), and you may not have a full hive until your second year. It is damaging for the colony to keep taking pollen from it and so rotating between hives would be better.

but it is an interesting hobby ...

G.

 

[beepollen]

seventy grammes per day since you asked

 

[beepollen]

cheers gavin,it's something ive wanted to do for a long time,im currently in morocco ,tasted their local bee pollen for the first time,its absolutely lovely,and im assured by the locals very healthy,the guy who sold it to me at eighteen pound a kilo looked twenty years younger than his age and reckoned he ate bee pollen everyday

 

[gavin]

Well, give it a go! I forgot to mention that you'll have to pick out the bee legs and various beasties that fall into the trap too ...

 

[beepollen]

its ok im not a fussy eater lol

 

[VEG]

Where in south wales are you from?

 

[beepollen]

cardiff not the best place for bee keeping eh

 

[VEG]

Nowt wrong with keeping bees in a city

 

[beepollen]

my neighbours may beg to differ,are there any issues with the council regarding permission ?

 

[VEG]

What about the roof of the flats?

 

[beepollen]

it's a possibility im looking into,or better still my uncles allotments lol

 

[BKF Admin]

cheers gavin,it's something ive wanted to do for a long time,im currently in morocco ,tasted their local bee pollen for the first time,its absolutely lovely,and im assured by the locals very healthy,the guy who sold it to me at eighteen pound a kilo looked twenty years younger than his age and reckoned he ate bee pollen everyday

Morocco,are you sure its bee Pollen

 

[beepollen]

hehe you've obviously passed through these parts .

 

[ian]

Hi beepollen

Make contact with some of your local clubs, many have sites that can be used by members.(Even if it's not your first choice one further afield may offer a club site)

Lot's of local clubs also run courses, and a bit of knowledge/advice obtained from a course will also help you pick a suitable site if you decide to go it alone.

Apiaries are not normally hard to come by if you go about it the right way. Particularly with a jar of honey in hand(even if it's not yours)


Regards Ian